MB&F Introduces New E-Commerce Concept
The last few months have been challenging, forcing companies across all sectors to rethink their business models. At MB&F this involved finding new ways to stay close to clients without being physically present, since most of their partners’ retail operations were on hold: at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, 24 of those 27 points of sale were closed! Offering customers an e-commerce option has become an essential part of the mix… but as you’ll see, they’re doing that with a twist.
MB&F announce a new e-commerce concept: the final step of an evolution that has been taking place over the last 12 months.
First, about a year ago they relaunched the e-shop of their MB&F M.A.D. Gallery in Geneva, featuring their MB&F + L’Epée 1839 table clocks and other kinetic sculptures from their M.A.D.Gallery artists. The traffic and sales on that channel have increased significantly over the last months; but until recently, MB&F wristwatches were not offered on the platform.
Adding their Horological and Legacy Machines was the logical next step. However, rather than launching a conventional e-shop featuring their entire collection, they will be offering a selection of just a few references, for limited periods of time on a rotation basis. This has already started with their most recent launches: the HM10 Bulldog, launched at the end of March (please read more about here), is on their e-shop since last month. The just-released LM101 MB&F x H. Moser (please read more about here)was their first launch to offer the option of an online purchase, immediately from the day of the launch – and this resulted in the first-ever online sale of an MB&F wristwatch.
Now for the twist – and to the best of our knowledge, this is an innovation for the watchmaking sector: their e-shop selection includes pieces from their retail partners. Here again, MB&F approach is not to offer the entire inventory of their partners, but carefully-selected pieces – typically the last remaining piece of a specific reference. Those pieces, although promoted on their e-shop, are sold in full transparency directly by MB&F retail partners to the final customer; their e-shop acts as an additional sales channel for MB&F partners, and MB&F take no extra commissions or fees on those sales.
The first retailer piece to be included is the very last MB&F HM3 Frog Titanium on the market, offered by their partner Westime (boutiques in Los Angeles, La Jolla and Miami). They have also added to the selection one of the last remaining MB&F LM2 White Gold Purple pieces, available from MB&F Geneva M.A.D.Gallery.
